


The Man With the Broken Heart

by StuckWithMe



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-09
Updated: 2014-03-09
Packaged: 2018-01-15 04:57:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1292245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StuckWithMe/pseuds/StuckWithMe





	The Man With the Broken Heart

John and Sherlock exchanged confused glances - Sherlock still pointing his gun at the bomb laced jacket that lay upon the ground before them - while they watched Jim Moriarty, the bomber they'd been chasing for what felt like years, the one who had put all those people, and John, in danger just to get to Sherlock. The man was a psychopath, a cold blooded murderer and a clever one at that. Moriarty made even Sherlock feel threatened, threatened by his intelligence and cunning. 

It had been Moriarty who had lead Sherlock here to find John the final victim of his little game. 'Here' was the pool where little Carl Powers had died all those years ago, the boy Sherlock had been so convinced was murdered, and of course he was right, he was always right. 

John eyed Moriarty suspiciously when he began screaming at whoever the poor sod was on the other end of the phone. Moriarty did not look impressed. He and Sherlock exchanged words before the shorter man hastily left the building, keeping up his strong stride with a stern look on his face, on the inside however, he was crumbling. The phone call was one he had been expecting for a while now, one he was dreading. It was about Eve, his wife, the secret wife. 

Jim and Eve had gotten married at a young age, nineteen to be exact, it was an act no one had expected, not even Eve herself, Jim had surprised her on the second anniversary of their first date and from then on they'd been practically inseparable. Jim loved Eve unconditionally, and she him, she was one of the very few people he let in to his life. She was his world. 

Four years ago, Eve was diagnosed with breast cancer, she had always been perfectly healthy so it came as quite a shock to them both. From that moment on, him vowed to do all he could to make her better and so far he had stuck by that promise. He took her to each hospital appointment, he spent hours in uncomfortable waiting rooms while he was having scans, he held her and wiped away her years after her first chemotherapy session and he'd even helped her pick out wigs. Jim paid for any treatment his beautiful wife needed and always made sure she was happy and comfortable - Eve called it smothering but Jim was taking care of the woman he loved. She was his everything, Jim needed Eve to be alright because without her he wasn't sure if he could be. 

When Jim received that phone call no less than half an hour ago he had been furious, he was halfway through one of the most important jobs of his life and had suddenly been interrupted by the sound of The Bee Gees. It was Sebastian who had called, a very close friend and colleague - of some sort - of Jim's, and in the moment he had called, Jim was prepared to kill him but the solemn tome of Sebastian's voice had explained everything. This day had been coming for a long time and despite all the preparation Jim had done, he still wasn't ready. 

Jim Moriarty let out a shaky breath when his car came to an abrupt stop outside the hospital - not St Bart's of course, he had too much of a history there now to risk letting Eve receive her treatment there. Instead, Jim had picked a more remote hospital a little outside London, the one where Eve's mother was born, so it meant something to her. 

For once in his life, Jim was showing fear, he tried his hardest to hide it, he wanted desperately not to feel whatsoever, he wanted to keep up this façade but his true love was suffering and that stone cold exterior was crashing down. 

"Hello, James," Elaine was Eve's favourite nurse here, the two were close friends by now and would sometimes go shopping together, as long as Eve was feeling up to it. Elaine was Eve's rock when Jim was busy with work and couldn't be there for his wife. "She's just upstairs, love. Same room," Elaine told him with a hint of a smile. Jim simply nodded at the nurse with a blank expression. When Elaine placed her chubby hand on his shoulder, wrinkling his suit, Jim wanted nothing more than to shove her away and scream at the stupid woman, he wanted her to know that now was not the time to fuck with him nor was it a time for smiles. 

"Thank you, Elaine," Jim whispered in reply, pushing his feelings of anger and self pity to the back of his mind. After his brief encounter with his wife's friend, Jim made his way to that much too familiar room. 

The frail, skinny woman lay still in her bed, her eyelids covering those captivating, emerald eyes of hers, the eyes Jim had fallen in love with God knows how many years ago. Jim sat himself down in the chair beside Eve's bed and loosened his black tie, dropping his head into his hands, he dug his fingernails into his scalp, furious with himself for not doing more Eve, he despised the lack of attention he'd given his own wife lately due to his becoming obsessed with Sherlock Holmes. For the first time in more years than Jim cared to remember, a year slid down his pale cheek, dropping on to the leg of his sleek trousers. He was supposed to be a strong, fearsome man, but what kind of man was he if he couldn't even protect his own wife? 

"Would you stop blaming yourself, Jim?" her voice was raspy and weak, it sounded as though speaking had become a chore for her. Jim's head shot up when Eve spoke, he wore a small smile as he watched her. "You can be as big and strong as you want, James Moriarty, but you can't stop cancer," she whispered with a hint of a laugh. Jim had missed her beautiful laugh, the laugh that could brighten even the darkest of his days. "And I know that if you could, you would," she smiled. "For me," it was often Eve liked to assure Jim that she knew how much he loved her and how he would give his life for her. Eve did this to stop him worrying. It pained her to see her love vexed. 

"The day I married you, Evelyn, I vowed to protect you and treat you like royalty. I swore to you that I would always be by your side, fighting your every fight and now here you are in the midst of your biggest fight and I've been off working. I made a promise, Eve and I broke it." The small woman flinched when her husband raised his voice slightly, she reached out to clasp his hand when one dropped into his lap. "I'm so sorry, darling, I truly am. I love you, Eve, you're all I've got and now," he paused to take a breath. "And now I'm losing you," Jim chocked on the poisonous words that escaped his mouth while his tears continued to fall freely. 

With the very little energy she had left, Eve pushed herself into a sitting position, gripping the sides of her bed after knocking the wind out of herself. 

"Don't get up, honey, you'll hurt yourself," Jim panicked, softly pushing Eve's shoulders to lay her back down. 

"It's too late for that now, Jim," Eve chuckled. The two stayed silent got a moment, Eve deciding that maybe jokes were out of the question at the moment. "I'll be dead soon," she sighed, breaking the silence and making her husband wince at the mere thought of losing her. "Oh come on, James, you've got to come to terms with it. I have," Eve told him, she smiled sympathetically at the dark haired man, remember the first day she'd ever laid eyes on Jim Moriarty - it was her sisters birthday party, Jim had been dragged along by a friend and neither he nor Eve particularly wanted to be there - she'd never forget that day, it was the day her life changed for the better. 

"I know I have to, Evie but it's so hard," Jim mumbled, digging his fingernails into his palm, something Eve had noticed he did when showing any kind of emotion he wasn't alright with showing (usually fear). "I'm just going to miss you so much," he whispered, leaning over to press a kiss to his wife's head. Jim moved his chair closer to Eve's bedside, normally he'd get in to the bed with her and hold her in his arms but today she was hooked up to so many machines through so many wires he wouldn't know where to start with getting through them, he gently moved his hand down her cheek, placing another kiss there. Eve raised her hand to cover Jim's and smiled.

"Do you remember when we got married?" Eve asked, earning a confused nod from her husband. "It was the most amazing day of my life. I remember when I was a little girl I planned this huge day with the perfect dress and the perfect flowers and the best venue money could buy, I planned a huge cake topped with your stereotypical little bride and groom grinning like idiots," Eve continued with a distant smile on her face. "Of course, as you know, I got none of that," the two laughed together, hand still gripping on to each other. "Instead I got a cheap registry office, a five quid, petrol station bunch of carnations and a dress from down the charity shop." When Jim opened his mouth to speak - and most likely apologise - Eve quickly shook her head to stop him. "It was still amazing though, because I got the best part of all," she grinned, turning her head to face Jim. "I got the perfect man." Jim leaned forward to kiss Eve's lips, leaning his forehead again hers. "We never did get the honeymoon we planned though," she mumbled, their faces were still so close that Jim could feel his wife's dry lips brushing against his own when she spoke. "I always loved the idea of a week in New Zealand, just me and you," Eve's voice grew quieter the more she spoke, Jim smiled weakly down at her, he knew it was almost time. Without Eve noticing, Jim reached behind her head and pushed the button to call a nurse in to the room. 

"Then let's go," Jim whispered to Eve, kissing her head. "Let's you and me, go to New Zealand for a week, for two weeks, a month! As long as you like, if you get through this and stay with me, I'll take you all over the world, I'll quit my job - get and early retirement - and take you anywhere you need up go so long as you don't leave me now," Jim wasn't one to beg, in any situation, but in this moment, watching his Eve slowly die, he wasn't himself. 

"Alright," Eve rasped with a weak, breathy laugh. "Alright, Jim, I'll go with you, I just need a little sleep first," she told him. Jim nodded, closing his eyes tightly. He leaned down one last time to kiss his beautiful, Eve on the head and then on the lips before allowing her to sleep. 

"Alright, darling," Jim murmured into her ear. "You go to sleep, I'll see you soon," he knew it was time when her breathing slowed, a momentary look of pain crossed Eve's face causing one of the same feeling to appear on Jim's and then, she was gone. Just like that. "Goodbye, my beautiful, Eve," Jim whimpered, he dropped her hand, stroking it slightly before pushing himself out of his chair. He was alone now, he had no one to love. 

Elaine entered Eve's hospital room wearing an expression of pure misery, she looked how Jim felt. The tanned woman approached Jim slowly, aware of how upset he would be, and placed a hand on his shoulder once more. 

"Is she really gone?" Jim asked, he wasn't sure why, he knew Eve was gone, of course she was, but he felt he needed the confirmation, for the sake of his own sanity. 

"She is, James," Elaine replied and in the moment, James Moriarty was not a killer, he was not a cold hearted monster or the worlds only consulting criminal, he was James Moriarty, the man who lost the love of his life. The man with the broken heart.


End file.
